Teaming up: ‘Govt has no right to govern if it cannot give its citizens peace’
A merger of the SNF and the PML-N would be for the better: Shah.
KARACHI:
The teams of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Mumtaz Bhutto-led Sindh National Front (SNF) opened negotiations on Tuesday, paving the way to a potential merger of the two parties.
The meeting was held at the Defence residence of PML-N Sindh president Ghous Ali Shah. The PML-N delegation comprised former Sindh governor Mamnoon Hussain, PML-N Sindh general secretary Saleem Zia and the new entrant to the party, former Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid MNA Marvi Memon. SNF’s delegation was led by Ameer Bux Bhutto.
Shah told reporters after the meeting that several issues were discussed and the conversation was positive. “There are a few issues that we need to talk to our respective leadership about and then we will meet again so we can be closer for the sake of Sindh, of Pakistan, and to work from one platform.”
Bhutto said that “both sides discussed ideological issues and presented their viewpoints but it is difficult to agree on everything in one meeting.”
These talks have been preceded by several meetings between PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif and Mumtaz Bhutto to step up opposition against the PPP-led government.
When asked that the SNF has spoken about a confederation of states and how it would align that stance with the PML-N’s, Shah said that that was “stretching it” but the SNF had a clear view on the points in the Pakistan Resolution and had desired a strong Pakistan.
Security conditions in Karachi and politics in Sindh were also discussed at the briefing for reporters. Shah called the government ‘incompetent’ for not being able to handle the state of the city. “The government has no right to govern if it cannot give its citizens peace,” he said.
“A merger or an alliance of the SNF and the PML-N would “be for the better,” Shah, a former chief minister of Sindh, said. “This will be for the sake of values.” He also expressed the party’s concern at the issues with the voters’ list that have surfaced in the past few weeks.
Marvi Memon told The Express Tribune that this will “unify real forces who wish to see prosperity in Sindh and will now be gaining momentum and the Pakistan Peoples Party-led coalition’s days are numbered.”
Memon also said that it will be “good for us to unite and we can be an alternative to the PPP for Sindh... an alternative that has not been there for the last few years.”
While there was no official view on whether the SNF would be merging into the PML-N or just forging an alliance, there has been considerable speculation that the latter is a likely option and will be formally announced at a rally in Sindh. The PML-N has also been stepping up efforts to net more Sindh-based politicians, and the next few weeks may well see more politicians and influential families in Sindh joining or allying with the PML-N.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 28th, 2012.
The teams of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Mumtaz Bhutto-led Sindh National Front (SNF) opened negotiations on Tuesday, paving the way to a potential merger of the two parties.
The meeting was held at the Defence residence of PML-N Sindh president Ghous Ali Shah. The PML-N delegation comprised former Sindh governor Mamnoon Hussain, PML-N Sindh general secretary Saleem Zia and the new entrant to the party, former Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid MNA Marvi Memon. SNF’s delegation was led by Ameer Bux Bhutto.
Shah told reporters after the meeting that several issues were discussed and the conversation was positive. “There are a few issues that we need to talk to our respective leadership about and then we will meet again so we can be closer for the sake of Sindh, of Pakistan, and to work from one platform.”
Bhutto said that “both sides discussed ideological issues and presented their viewpoints but it is difficult to agree on everything in one meeting.”
These talks have been preceded by several meetings between PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif and Mumtaz Bhutto to step up opposition against the PPP-led government.
When asked that the SNF has spoken about a confederation of states and how it would align that stance with the PML-N’s, Shah said that that was “stretching it” but the SNF had a clear view on the points in the Pakistan Resolution and had desired a strong Pakistan.
Security conditions in Karachi and politics in Sindh were also discussed at the briefing for reporters. Shah called the government ‘incompetent’ for not being able to handle the state of the city. “The government has no right to govern if it cannot give its citizens peace,” he said.
“A merger or an alliance of the SNF and the PML-N would “be for the better,” Shah, a former chief minister of Sindh, said. “This will be for the sake of values.” He also expressed the party’s concern at the issues with the voters’ list that have surfaced in the past few weeks.
Marvi Memon told The Express Tribune that this will “unify real forces who wish to see prosperity in Sindh and will now be gaining momentum and the Pakistan Peoples Party-led coalition’s days are numbered.”
Memon also said that it will be “good for us to unite and we can be an alternative to the PPP for Sindh... an alternative that has not been there for the last few years.”
While there was no official view on whether the SNF would be merging into the PML-N or just forging an alliance, there has been considerable speculation that the latter is a likely option and will be formally announced at a rally in Sindh. The PML-N has also been stepping up efforts to net more Sindh-based politicians, and the next few weeks may well see more politicians and influential families in Sindh joining or allying with the PML-N.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 28th, 2012.